Bengals' Pacman Jones accused of head-butting cops, spitting

Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones was jailed Tuesday on charges he head-butted police and spit on a nurse after being arrested for disorderly conduct

By Dan Sewell
Associated Press

CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones was jailed Tuesday on charges he head-butted police and spit on a nurse after being arrested for disorderly conduct in his latest brush with the law. Authorities said he was so combative that he had to be placed in a restraint chair.

A lawyer representing Jones at his initial court appearance told a judge he "vehemently denies" the allegations against him. The Hamilton County judge set bond at $37,500 for Jones and ordered that he submit to a blood test.

Bengals cornerback Adam "Pacman" Jones is arraigned Tuesday Jan. 3, 2017 in Hamilton County Municipal Court, in Cincinatti, after be charged with a felony charge of harassment with a bodily substance. (Photo/The Cincinnati Enquirer via AP)

The Hamilton County sheriff's office said Jones would remain jailed until the blood test can be performed Wednesday morning. Sheriff Jim Neil said Jones was "disorderly and combative" throughout his booking just after midnight Tuesday and had to be put in restraints.

"Whether someone is a professional athlete, a blue collar worker or homeless, our staff will treat them with respect and we expect the same," Neil said in a statement. "Regardless of who they are, if they endanger my deputies, our medical staff or themselves, we will take action."

Court records show Jones, who has a history of trouble with the law during his NFL career, is accused of pushing and poking a man in the eye, then struggling with Cincinnati police officers by head-butting, kicking and refusing to get into the police car. He then spit on a nurse's hand while being booked into the jail, police said.

The spitting, following his arrest on misdemeanor charges of assault, disorderly conduct and obstructing official business, resulted in a felony count of harassment with a bodily substance, authorities said.

A prosecutor said the altercation began when Jones started pounding on doors at the Millennium Hotel, near the Bengals' stadium in downtown Cincinnati. He then pushed and poked a security guard, authorities said.

Public defender Lauren Staley said he "vehemently denies" that he assaulted anyone and will hire an attorney to contest the charges.

She said Jones, who stood next to her in court nodding in agreement, has witnesses for his defense and had waited for police to arrive to explain what happened.

"They essentially didn't hear his side of the story before placing him under arrest," Staley said.

Bengals spokesman Jack Brennan said the club is aware of the incident but by policy doesn't comment on unresolved legal matters.

Jones will be subject to potential NFL discipline after the case is resolved. Jones' agent didn't respond immediately to a request for comment.

Jones, who played in Sunday's season-ending home victory over Baltimore, has had legal issues since making his NFL debut with Tennessee in 2005 after playing for West Virginia University.

He was suspended as a Titan by the NFL throughout the 2007 season, then was suspended again during the 2008 season as a member of the Dallas Cowboys.

The Atlanta native was acquitted in 2013 on an assault charge in Hamilton County after a woman accused him of punching her in a nightclub. Earlier that year, he paid a fine for disorderly conduct after police accused him of making offensive comments at a traffic stop. He also pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in January 2012 after an arrest at a Cincinnati bar.

Earlier, Jones pleaded an equivalent of no contest to a misdemeanor charge of conspiracy to commit disorderly conduct in a 2007 Las Vegas strip club melee. Jones was blamed for instigating violence that led to the shooting by someone else of two club employees, one left paralyzed from the waist down. He was ordered to pay more than $12.4 million in damages.

The Titans made Jones the sixth overall pick in the 2005 draft, and he started 28 games in his first two seasons. Arrests and suspensions nearly scuttled his career before the Bengals signed him in 2010 and he became a regular starting defensive back and punt returner.

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